1. FIELD
The disclosure relates to a mobile communication terminal and a method for recommending a content item.
2. DESCRIPTION OF THE RELATED ART
It is ordinary known that a mobile communication terminal stores a rule to run a program. If a condition of the mobile communication terminal accords with the rule, the program corresponding to the condition automatically runs.
According to a literature, Fumihiko Kato, Norio Toyama, Takashi Hattori & Tatsuya Ogino, working papers for “7th Programming and Application Systems Workshop SPA 2004”, pp. 177-184 (2004), the rule is composed of at least one condition, such as items of a date, a time and a place, and action information. In addition, each condition is defined by at least one condition label. For example, the condition is composed of condition labels of “morning”, “evening” and so on for the time item, and “Pennsylvania Station”, “office” and so on for the place item.
The rule is composed of the condition labels and the action information. For example, the rule is defined by “daytime” and “office” as the condition labels, and “display a news program” as the action information.
Further, the mobile communication terminal determines whether a condition of the mobile communication terminal accords with each of the condition labels by using sensor data obtained from a sensor. For example, a degree of accord is estimated based on an estimation equation, in such a way that it is estimated that the condition of the mobile communication terminal accords with the condition label in the rule if an output of the estimation equation exceeds a threshold.
Then, the condition of the mobile communication terminal satisfies a combination of the condition labels in the rule, a program identified in the rule is automatically run.
That is, the mobile communication terminal described above has a condition estimation means for calculating accuracy information which indicates the degree of accord with each of condition labels on the basis of a sensor output, and a recommend rule which sets a combination of the condition labels as a condition and describes a combination of the condition and a content item to be provided. If a combination of condition labels whose accuracy information are greater than a threshold accords with the condition described in the recommend rule, the mobile communication terminal automatically recommends a content item which corresponds to the recommend rule.
Incidentally, if a plurality of recommend rules are provided, the above technology has a problem in some cases in that an obtained condition agrees with the plural recommend rules at the same time, and the number of provided content items is greater than the maximum number of recommended content items. As a result, the technology also has a problem in that a content item corresponding to a recommend rule that firmly accords with the condition is covered with a content item that corresponds to a recommend rule of a weaker degree of accord.
According to a technology for estimating a condition in which a mobile communication terminal is being put and for recommending, upon the condition according with a specific condition, a content item corresponding to the condition, a result of estimating the condition is treated as an indefinite “accuracy” and a degree to which the accuracy meets the condition is computed and used so that a proper recommendation is somewhat enabled even if the condition is being uncertain.
In a case, however, where a condition is treated as the accuracy and a plurality of conditions are specified and specifically described, there is a problem in that a content item is hardly recommended as it is less certain to meet all the conditions.
Further, if a plurality of recommend rules are provided, there is a problem in some cases in that an obtained condition accords with the plural recommend rules at the same time, and the number of provided content items is greater than the maximum number of recommended content pieces. As a result, a content item corresponding to a recommend rule that much accords with the condition is covered with content items that correspond to recommend rules of a weaker degree of agreement.